Heroin antidote soon to be sold in Rockford pharmacies

Wednesday

ROCKFORD — Trained pharmacists statewide soon will be able to dispense the overdose reversal drug naloxone without a prescription.

Regulators announced Monday that a short web-based training program is available to pharmacists who want to help reduce deaths from heroin and painkillers.

The change results from a state law passed last year. The legislation allows pharmacists to dispense naloxone kits to people at risk of overdose, their family members and friends, first responders and school nurses.

Naloxone is often administered as a nasal spray under its brand name of Narcan. Naloxone does not create a high or have major side effects. But it is highly effective in reversing potentially fatal overdoses from opioid painkillers and heroin.

Hope Over Addiction, a not-for-profit Rockford-based advocacy group, provides education about the disease of addiction and support for those left behind after an overdose. The group also provides free training and distribution of naloxone kits. Most of the recipients are parents of those addicted to opioids.

Bonnie Falzone-Capriola is a co-founder of the group. Her son, Barry Falzone, died in 2011 after his fourth heroin overdose. She is aware of the hesitancy among some health care providers to embrace the availability and distribution of the life-saving drug out of fear that people who abuse heroin and other opioids will have less incentive to stop if they or someone they know has the antidote on hand.

"We feel with the rapid rate of overdoses anything that can save a life is worth it," she said. "No doubt people have overdosed repeatedly, but you don't know when they are going to turn the corner and turn their lives around.

"We don't feel people should be able to decide who should live and who shouldn't."

It's not clear how many pharmacies will make the antidote available. Representatives from CVS and Walgreens did not return phone calls.

The cost of the drug also is not known.

"I can tell you it's not going to be cheap," Falzone-Capriola said. "It's not going to be $5 or $10 bucks."

In 2014, Illinois experienced more than 1,700 deaths from heroine and opioid overdoses.

Last year in Winnebago County, 42 people died from heroin overdoses and 12 more died from a combination of heroin and cocaine, according to data provided by the Winnebago County Coroner's Office. In 2014, 42 people died from heroin and 18 more from a combination of heroin and cocaine.

"Chicago Recovery Alliance is here in Rockford now. They will train people as to how to use it, and they will give families a kit. That's been going on here for a couple of years now," Winnebago County Coroner Sue Fiduccia said of the availability of naloxone. "The fact that you can go to a pharmacy now, I guess I have some concerns about it. Are we going to have a heroin parties now where people say, 'We'll stay sober and give this to you if you stop breathing.'

"Until we can see that buying it at a pharmacy is helping people rather than enabling them, I have some concerns about it.

"But no doubt. It will save lives."

The number of heroin deaths in Winnebago County likely would have been higher the past two years if not for the efforts of Winnebago County Sheriff's deputies who began toting the drug in 2014. That year, the deputies administered the drug 24 times resulting in 23 saves and one death; and in 2015, deputies administered the drug 18 times resulting in 14 saves and four deaths, said Sheriff's Department spokesman Ken DeCoster.

Through the first three months of this year, the drug has been administered eight times by deputies resulting in seven saves and one death, he said.

All law enforcement officers of the Boone County Sheriff’s Office were trained in February to use naloxone by MercyRockford EMS Systems. Wednesday, all Boone County Sheriff's deputies began carrying the life-saving antidote.

MercyRockford EMS in partnership with Capron Rescue Squad provided the naloxone kits for every Boone County deputy at no cost.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Chris Green: 815-987-1241; cgreen@rrstar.com; @chrisfgreen

Fatal overdoses in Winnebago County

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Heroin 23 21 30 32 42 42

Cocaine 22 23 30 22 14 26

Heroin & cocaine 7 8 12 19 18 12

THC 4 1 8 13 4 3

THC & Alcohol 2 2 6 12 4 2

Source: Winnebago County Coroner's Office

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